An escaped lioness has been causing a stir in Berlin since Thursday (July 19). Citizens of the German capital are more used to admiring the big cats in a zoo context — in contrast to some celebrities who kept lions and other exotic animals as pets like our budgies!
mike tyson
The former boxing champion is known to have had lions and tigers as four-legged roommates for a number of years — which is also addressed in his cameo appearance in The Hangover. At one point, Tyson was even attacked by one of his house lions, as he told talk show host Jimmy Kimmel: “I had a lion bit me, it was really bad, I ended up with a tetanus shot. I lied and said a dog bit me because they would have taken my cat if I had told them.” Tyson is now said to no longer keep wild animals — to focus on podcasts and his hemp business.
Tippi Hedren
The Hollywood actress, best known for starring in Hitchcock’s The Birds and Marnie, had a pet lion named Neil in 1971, who was sometimes allowed to sleep in daughter Melanie Griffith’s bed, according to a spread of photos from the ’70s.
slash
Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash is known for his love of snakes — but not only did he have a “snakepit” at home, he also once kept a mountain lion as a pet. His name was Curtis, by the way. In 1994, Slash even smuggled his lion into a Four Seasons hotel unnoticed, according to Faroutmagazine in an amusing one Article describes. Unfortunately, we don’t have a photo of Slash and Curtis at hand right now — but of snake Clyde:
Michael Jackson
Well, with the King of Pop, the term “keep as a pet” was rather flexible — because Michael Jackson ran an entire zoo on his Neverland estate. One of the residents there: the Bengal tiger Thriller. Of course, Jackson’s most famous wild animal also deserves an honorable mention — the chimpanzee Bubbles.
More celebrities who own or have owned exotic animals:
Ice T — The rapper has sharks in his home aquarium.
Nicholas Cage — Never at a loss for an extravagant penchant, Nicolas Cage bet on cobras as pets.
Kirstie alley — Look who’s talking? With Kristie Allie, it could well be lemurs.
Justin Bieber — The Canadian pop star caused a sensation with a capuchin monkey. Because he took the animal to Germany but didn’t have a license for it, the monkey was brought to the animal shelter. “Biebs” was supposed to pay, but didn’t comply – so the animal became the property of the Federal Republic.
Salvador Dalí — It goes without saying that an artist like Salvador Dalí had an exotic sidekick — namely an ocelot.